topic Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement in Wellness

Cranberry Pills/Supplement

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 19:46:07 GMT

I went to CVS today looking for cranberry pills for UTIs. They must have been out. Looked on Amazon and they have them, but geez Louise, what strength. They have 420mg, 4200mg and a 25,000mg. That is quite a difference. What are you supposed to take?

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

2blonde — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 19:50:20 GMT

I order all my supplements from Puritan's Pride. They're at home, so I don't remember the mg, but they are "triple strength." I say go with the higher amount as long as the gel cap isn't too large for you to swallow, If you go for the smaller mg, you will want to take 2 or 3 a day.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

KingstonsMom — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 19:54:32 GMT

I've had a lot of problems with UTI's all my life and the pills I use for the burning is called AZO, carried by most drug stores, WalMart, etc.

These are not cranberry pills, but contain iodine which coats the inflamed tissue of the urethra.

When I used to get them by prescription, they were 200mg and the over the counter ones (AZO) are 95mg, so I take 2 to = the prescription strength.

One word of caution.....your urine will be bright orange and they do stain if you get a drop on your underwear!

Hope you get some relief, I feel your pain, I just got over one!

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

Lipstickdiva — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:15:20 GMT

I take Andrew Lessmans. His are 400mg capsules and I take 2 of them a day. His aren't expensive if you get them on sale.

If you are trying to find something to relieve symptoms of a UTI you already have, I would go with the AZO. But if you are trying to prevent a future UTI or have other bladder issues, go with the cranberry supplements.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

sweetee2 — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:20:37 GMT

All the brick and mortar stores sell cranberry pills in the UTI section of the store.

I'd be interested to know if they really work.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

Shelbelle — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:32:04 GMT

I also order from Puritans Pride, I buy their brand, the one that says One A Day, their highest potency, been taking it for years, and no UTI's.

BTW, Lessman says best time to take cranberry is in the evening or even at bedtime, when the bladder is less active.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

sweetee2 — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:35:45 GMT

Just another thought since we're on the subject, for those of you that like a more natural way for the pain, Juniper berries. They have saved me more than once especially when you wake up in the middle of the night. You can buy the powder or the berries and grind them up your self. I just make a cup of warm water add a heaping teaspoon drink it down. I keep doing this until the pain goes away. I have to say I'm usually sitting on the toilet and just letting the liquid work it's way through. You can tell when the pain is gone. This also won't mess the urine test as sometimes the UZO can.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

Lipstickdiva — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 20:36:14 GMT

@Shelbelle wrote:
I also order from Puritans Pride, I buy their brand, the one that says One A Day, their highest potency, been taking it for years, and no UTI's.
BTW, Lessman says best time to take cranberry is in the evening or even at bedtime, when the bladder is less active.

@Shelbelle, yes he does which is why I take mine at night before I go to bed. However the last time he was on HSN, he specifically said if you are going to take 2 a day, to take one in the morning and 1 at night. I still take mine both at night because it's been working for me.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

NicksmomESQ — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 21:09:24 GMT

Do the cranberry pills help you go to the bathroom less often? Or are they just to prevent uti’s?

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

KingstonsMom — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 21:12:42 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
All the brick and mortar stores sell cranberry pills in the UTI section of the store.

I'd be interested to know if they really work.

@sweetee2

Many studies say that cranberry juice/supplements do NOT help prevent/treat UTI's.

You can google for more, but here's one study from Cleveland Clinic:

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/can-cranberry-juice-stop-uti/

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

KingstonsMom — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 21:15:09 GMT

@NicksmomESQ wrote:
Do the cranberry pills help you go to the bathroom less often? Or are they just to prevent uti’s?

@NicksmomESQ

The cranberry pills/juice have been thought to prevent UTI's, but many studies have proven they do not.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/can-cranberry-juice-stop-uti/

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

Beauty$Junkie — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 01:29:03 GMT

I have had the best luck with Puritan's 8 oz concentrate cranberry pure juice. If I feel a uti coming on, I take 2 Tblsp and then a glass of water a couple of times and it clears me right up. I would not want to be without it. The regular cranberry juices contain sugar which makes the uti worse.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

sfnative — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 15:58:14 GMT

@CrazyKittyLvr2

Two things. The first is that the very best cranberry supplement I've ever taken and keep at hand is one I purchase at Whole Foods. (It's probably available on Amazon.) Though I don't have the bottle with me, it's a white plastic bottle with a stylized Greek woman with green vines as decoration. I cannot recommend this product enough. It's fabulous! Have recommended it to other women and they've had excellent results as well.

My second point is relative to age. If you happen to be post-menopausal and haven't seen an Urologist, please give that a go. I was experiencing what I thought was an extremely long UTI stretch, which drove me to distraction and interferred with my concentration in surgery. Got the lecture that as I had just entered menopause and my estrogen level was way down from the previous decades of my life, lack of estrogen was affecting the health of my genitourinary system. I was initially prescribed a small pill, inserted by way of a blue plastic injector, 2x/wk; but, now use Extrace Cream, which packs more of a wallop, 2x/wk.

Good luck!

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 16:15:20 GMT

@sfnative I went through menopause 20 yrs. ago. I was 48 and never had an issue til 7 mos.ago when a pre-op test showed a UTI. I know my issue is not drinking enough water. I just don't, no idea why. I think I am part camel. I drink coffee mainly and sometimes a half can of Pepsi. I didn't drink more than 4 cups of liquid a day. I am now drinking water all the time. Hopefully all the water will resolve the issue. I had a renal ultrasound last fall and it was ok.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

corita — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 16:45:36 GMT

@Lipstickdiva wrote:
I take Andrew Lessmans. His are 400mg capsules and I take 2 of them a day. His aren't expensive if you get them on sale.
If you are trying to find something to relieve symptoms of a UTI you already have, I would go with the AZO. But if you are trying to prevent a future UTI or have other bladder issues, go with the cranberry supplements.
---------------
I would be careful with all those OTC -UTI pills like AZO. They raise your blood pressure.
I have switched to D Mannose pills. They work for me!! Found out about them from a poster on this forum!!

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

Nightowlz — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 19:13:09 GMT

One of Andrew Lessman's monthly specials is his Cranberry. You can get a 240 ct size bottle for $39.90.

If you take 1 per day it will last you 8 months or 4 months if you take 2 per day.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

colliemom4 — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 19:55:36 GMT

@sfnative wrote:
@CrazyKittyLvr2

Two things. The first is that the very best cranberry supplement I've ever taken and keep at hand is one I purchase at Whole Foods. (It's probably available on Amazon.) Though I don't have the bottle with me, it's a white plastic bottle with a stylized Greek woman with green vines as decoration. I cannot recommend this product enough. It's fabulous! Have recommended it to other women and they've had excellent results as well.

My second point is relative to age. If you happen to be post-menopausal and haven't seen an Urologist, please give that a go. I was experiencing what I thought was an extremely long UTI stretch, which drove me to distraction and interferred with my concentration in surgery. Got the lecture that as I had just entered menopause and my estrogen level was way down from the previous decades of my life, lack of estrogen was affecting the health of my genitourinary system. I was initially prescribed a small pill, inserted by way of a blue plastic injector, 2x/wk; but, now use Extrace Cream, which packs more of a wallop, 2x/wk.

Good luck!

@sfnative I've been on the Estrace Cream for about 5 years. It's helped me a lot.

Re: Cranberry Pills/Supplement

World Traveler — Sat, 23 Mar 2019 18:58:26 GMT

Agree with @Nightowlz

I recently started using his cranberry supplement and think they are great. Took a couple of weeks before I noticed changes.